Has anyone out there had suicidal thoughts or actually know anyone who committed suicide while taking neurontin?
MY VERY DEAR friend completed suicide 3 months ago and we just found out that he was taking this medication.
I just want to talk to someone about this!
Thanks!

Tm,
I am so sorry to hear about your dear friend. How devastating for you.

Nuerontin is often prescribed for epilepsy and/or neuropathic pain. Not sure why your friend was taking it but there have been reports of emotional lability on this drug, including what is characterized as "abnormal thinking", and hostility.

In epileptics, studies have reported the following possible side effects: Anxiety, hostility; apathy, hallucination, decrease or loss of libido, agitation, paranoia, depersonalization, euphoria, feeling high, doped-up sensation, suicidal gesture, and true psychosis.
Rarely, there have been reports of personality disorder, "subdued temperament", mania, neurosis, hysteria, antisocial reaction.

Studies in adults with neuropathic pain have shown some reports of confusion and depression, anxiety, and basically the whole gamut of emotional "disorders" one can think of.

When someone close to us commits suicide, the first question we seek an answer for is "WHY?"

We want to find a reason. Suicide always seems so incomprehensible to those of us who have never felt those feelings. If your friend was never depressed to begin with and started showing signs of depression after being put on the drug, then the drug might be suspect. However, if your friend was in chronic pain, this alone can cause depression leading to suicidal ideation.

Again, I'm so sorry for your loss...

zuzu xx

My personal experience w/ Neurontin was weird & my doc said to get a new one if I
didn't trust him. I got a new one! You start out lo-dose & some reading led me to hi-
doses of 4000mg a day. I took 100mg's @ bed for 3 nights. 3rd pill = waking w/
screaming vivid nightmares & morning loopy feeling. Dr. said try again & get use to it.
I did & same response. He said 2nd try failed because of anxiety of `thinking' same
would happen. 3rd time around, night 2 was terror. None of this happened before I
used this drug for muscle pain. It's expensive & pushed as a fix-all by Dr's. A friend
uses 3000mg & thinks `I'm' nuts. Let's see when it goes off patent. If Dr's spent time
listening & monitoring patients, we would not have to question healt***re. 1 pill does
not fit all. I'm so sorry for your loss. I do believe this drug helps some & possibly it
can aggitate other problems to the surface. Pain itself, alters your mental state. I do
believe I was hallucinating from neurontin & it wasn't for me. Many take it w/ 1 or 2
other drugs & then they overlap.

Thank you for your response. I agree with you that not all meds are for everyone! I do know that Pfizer is in big trouble right now for promoting neurontin for off label uses! I am very upset and angry at doctors like yours that think it is in our head. I have been on meds where that has happened and the docs make you feel like you are crazy!
Anyway, I hope you found a new MD!
Well God Bless and thanks! :angel:

Just to counter,, been on neurontin for a year now (900 mg a day) no problems. At the start I was a little more sleppy but I got used to it.

Me too, been taking Neurontin for 4 years now with no problems. Also have good neuropathic pain relief from them. Guess it works differently for all of us

I hate neurontin and my pain doc won't put me on another drug. I am currently on 1200 mg a day. Since starting this med., I now have severe pain in both wrists and close my left eye when I read. When I mentioned this to the Dr. he sent me for an EMG (result carpal tunnel but never had a problem before), told me this wasn't a side effect because it wasn't listed in PDR, and increased my level. I do not believe that this drug has increased my depression though, I feel people blame it for a symptom of our pain.

I have been taking neurontin for a few months now for chronic back pain. I dont see where my back is any better, and if anything, i am more tired and depressed than i was before. I told my dr and she just upped the dose saying it should get better. I have no idea what to do now and i'm afraid to go off it from hearing the horror stories.
Well, thats just my experience. Everyone is different and I hope you do better!

I was extremely tired the first 3 months I took it, could barely stay awake. But I finally got used to it and the body adapted. I can see some improvement in my neuropathy, but it is not dramatic. I am at 900 mg a day. I guess I will just keep taking it forever. Don't want to risk withdrawl.